Pennington: Sorting out the Fulmer-to-Kiffin saga

Photo by Michael Patrick

UT Athletic Director Mike Hamilton, left, poses with the new head football coach Lane Kiffin and his wife, Layla, and UT President John Petersen following a press conference Monday in Neyland Stadium Kaplan Center. Kiffin, who becomes UT's 21st head football coach at Tennessee.

New Tennessee football coach Lane Kiffin, second from right, poses for a picture with his wife, Layla, athletic director Mike Hamilton, left, and UT president John Peterson at the press conference Monday announcing Kiffin’s hire.

From the moment Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer announced his forced resignation, the jury has been out, going over evidence and trying to reach a verdict.

“Did athletic director Mike Hamilton make the right move?” “Could Tennessee have waited?” “Could UT have handled things better?” “How would Phillip Fulmer and staff handle the news?” “How would the team respond?”

One month later, we now know the answers to most of the questions we’ve been asking. Here are one man’s opinions on how things have turned out.

“Did Tennessee have to make the move?” Yes. Fulmer had a remarkable run at Tennessee, but the program is in worse shape now than when he took it over. Unlike Fulmer, new coach Lane Kiffin faces a rebuilding job as he starts out. Tennessee went 5-7 in a down year in the SEC … and they did it with more senior starters than just about every other team in the league. That’s not a good sign.

But this was purely and simply a business decision. When a large portion of the fanbase sells their tickets to Alabama fans at mid-season, you know it’s time for a change. As always, fans have the ultimate power. When they decide to stop attending games, a coach who is 12-0 can still be let go. If 100,000 show up when a coach is 0-12, the coach will be kept. This was all business. Think Abe Vigoda in “The Godfather.”

“Should UT have waited to make the move?” No. As we now know, the timing has allowed Hamilton to get the man he wanted and have him in place for December recruiting. When so many people worried about the signing class, the fact that Kiffin is now on the job has to serve as an “ah, so that’s why they did it” point of clarification.

The move also came after a loss to South Carolina (easier than doing it after a win) and it kept the staff from dealing with another full month of speculation. Even though Fulmer and crew said the timing was a mistake, I don’t recall them saying anything about a “three-week funeral” when Majors was forced out with three games to go in 1992.

“What about the negative backlash?” People who played for, played with or have come to know Fulmer and staff would have been upset whenever the announcement came down. The team’s reaction was another matter. Some inside the program viewed the emotional response as proof that a new, more disciplined direction was needed. Personally, I think it was to be expected. And already, it sounds as though the team that was so angry with the Fulmer dismissal is now excited by the new hire. The loss to Wyoming was a disappointment, but having seen this team all year, I wouldn’t chalk that defeat wholly up to emotions.

“How did Fulmer and his staff handle the situation?” Spectacularly. Some had a problem with the coach for not “manning up” during his emotional press conference, but as someone who teared up when the Boston Celtics raised Banner 17 in October, I’ll not hold it against the man that he got emotional. He loves Tennessee.

Fulmer’s situation was vastly different from that of his predecessor, but still, you can tell that Fulmer paid attention to the level of bitterness that festered between former coach Johnny Majors and the UT powerbrokers, the UT powerbrokers and Majors.

When a man says he will help with the coaching search if asked because, “I’m a Tennessee guy,” that’s a special thing. And that’s why Fulmer (and his staff) deserve a round of applause whenever they step back into Neyland Stadium. First class in a difficult, painful situation by all of those coaches involved.

“Did Tennessee win the press conference?” Going into the press conference, no. Coming out of it, yes. Last Sunday, on my television show, I felt the need to defend the hire and say that Kiffin’s track record is too short for him to be declared a strikeout before ever seeing a pitch.

After his press conference, I felt the need to say, “Kiffin’s track record is too short for him to be declared a home run before ever seeing a pitch.” That switch in fan mood can be chalked up to the natural hopefulness of a fanbase plus the confident responses of a new coach. So, yes, for many, Hamilton and Tennessee “won” the press conference.

“Did Tennessee make the right hire?” Way too early to tell on that one. Some folks like Chris Mortensen (ESPN) and Southern Cal coach Pete Carroll believe that Kiffin will be great. Others like Mark May (ESPN) and Don Banks (Sports Illustrated) believe Kiffin’s greatest strength is his ability to win a job interview.

Personally, I think UT should have concentrated on finding a coach who had a proven track record of winning with less (which is what the Vols have right now). Had they done that, recruiting doors would have eventually opened. A Mike Leach or a Nick Saban have proved they can coach an average team up.

But recruiting ability seems to have taken precedence instead. That’s not a terrible thing considering Tennessee’s in-state liabilities, but I’ve seen other great recruiters beach their boats when put in the captain’s chair. Ever heard of Ron Zook or Ed Orgeron?

What we don’t know yet is whether or not Kiffin will be a great recruiter like the last two chaps I mentioned, or a superior coach AND great recruiter as Saban has proved to be.

“What kind of statement did Tennessee just make?” Well, they most certainly were aggressive. There were no “sure thing” candidates on the market this year. Yes, they gave shoutouts to Jon Gruden, Lovie Smith and Bill Cowher, but those were long, longshots and Hamilton knew it.

So they instead went the young, up-and-comer route. And they’re prepared to spend a huge amount of cash on his support staff, which, frankly, is exciting. That’s a different dynamic than what we’ve seen elsewhere in the conference.

So what kind of statement did UT make? “We’ll make bold moves to get back in step with Florida, Alabama, LSU and Georgia.” That’s the statement that I take from the past month, anyway. Whether Tennessee can pull that off or not, well, the jury’s still out on that one.

John Pennington hosts the Hall’s Salvage Sports Source on Sunday at 11 a.m. on WATE.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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